It appears to me as though the two readings assigned this week examine two sides of the same coin: methods of racial categorization have both practical and humanitarian impact. Which offers greater insight into the issue at hand is difficult to say, though it is apparent that one impacts the other. Separation between scientific and humanistic approach, while arguably ideal, is ultimately impossible to practice. Although many a scientist will likely approve of this observation, the implications of entanglement are often less malicious within their respective disciplines than those informed by racial projects.
Let me explain myself; scientific racism may have been viewed as an admirable, enlightened pursuit at one moment in time but the damage it incurred while running its course is inexcusable. Analysis of genotype spilling over to phenotype is not unlike taxonomic studies conducted on nonhuman species. Take ants, for instance. I’m in the midst of reading “Letters to a Young Scientist,” written by Edward Wilson, entomologist extraordinaire. He discusses at length what a massive undertaking categorizing ant species proved to be, praising a young graduate student for the years of effort she put into the project. In recognition of the student’s unwavering fascination with ants – even going so far as to have tattoos of particular species decorate her arms – Wilson highlights the passion necessary for driving scientists forward through research. It was monumental in his sociobiological research; a young scientist was willing to sift through piles of data in the hopes of extracting patterns necessary for categorization, and all in the name of science.
I am willing to offer the benefit of doubt to our lovely researches conducting similar studies with the human phenotype. Perhaps they too were doing so in the name of science, letting passion guide them towards clarity. The results in this case, however, did not merely draw parallels between one ant and his neighbor. Rather, they dared interfere with human conception of identity. As discussed in the readings at length, individuals from different areas relate to race and its social manifestation differently from one another. Race may or may not play a role in an individual’s perception of themselves, but when the Powers That Be (AKA races dominating others through manipulation of power) decide otherwise, that individual experiences a sudden, severe shift in identity and all social implications that come along with it. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie beautifully illustrates this point in her novel, “Americanah.” Nigerian herself, she speaks through a young Nigerian woman visiting America for the first time. The protagonist runs a blog, discussing all that she witnesses and reflects upon in her travels. Discussing her newfound racial identity, she explains the culture shock:
Dear Non-American Black, when you make the choice to come to America, you become black. Stop arguing. Stop saying I’m Jamaican or I’m Ghanaian. America doesn’t care.
She later clarifies her observations:
The only reason you say that race was not an issue is because you wish it was not. We all wish it was not. But it’s a lie. I came from a country where race was not an issue; I did not think of myself as black and I only became black when I came to America.
Impositions such as these degrade self-esteem, leading their victims to believe they are incapable of self-awareness. We cannot claim efforts to separate humans into individual races by phenotypes as scientific; they lead only to confusion and shame, entirely bypassing supposed progress and heading straight for supremacist ideology and power struggles. Identity must be determined on one’s own, without governmental or scientific interference.
